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paolaelectra's avatar
paolaelectra
New Veteran
5 years ago
Solved

Is it true I need a new graphics card?

Just that. I need a second opinion. Thank you. 💔
pc
  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    5 years ago

    @paolaelectra  The immediate issue is obvious: your processor is thermal throttling and tanking game performance.  The processor doesn't actually run that hot by current standards, but the maximum temperature for any core is set at 75ºC, and each core got up to 72 or 73 during the log.  The graphics card is also throttling, but that might be due to the processor's low usage.  The graphics card temperatures are somewhat high but still okay I think, and the other components seem to be performing reasonably well.

    Normally, I'd tell you to start by cleaning your fans, both on the cooler for the processor and the intake and outtake case fans.  But your all-in-one isn't as easy to clean as tower models.  Still, it may be easy enough to take off the back panel and blow compressed air out through the vent(s) to get rid of any excess dust.  If you're not comfortable with this process and don't have a manual that explains how to do it, let me know, and I'll try to find something.

puzzlezaddict's avatar
puzzlezaddict
Hero+
5 years ago

@paolaelectra  I'm sorry, but your computer doesn't support a graphics card upgrade.  R7A360 isn't a proper graphics card, just a mobile graphics chip designed for laptops and all-in-one computers.

The driver for that mobile chip is also very out of date.  Unfortunately, AMD never released drivers for this particular chip, leaving it to the manufacturers of the systems the chip was in.  HP hasn't released a newer driver since the one you have either.  So I'm not really sure there's a good option here.

paolaelectra's avatar
paolaelectra
New Veteran
5 years ago

Hello @puzzlezaddict! 

So there's no hope for me, no way I can play The Sims 4 anymore (properly, pc runs it, but poorly) except maybe by buying a brand new computer?

Again 💔

  • puzzlezaddict's avatar
    puzzlezaddict
    Hero+
    5 years ago

    @paolaelectra  A new computer with reasonably strong hardware would handle Sims 4 better, for sure.  But if that's not currently a reasonable option, you should theoretically still be able to play on this one, with some adjustments.  If the game still lags no matter what, that suggests there's another system issue that needs to be addressed.

    Please move your entire Sims 4 user data folder out of Documents\Electronic Arts and onto your desktop.  (Even if you've done it recently, start fresh again.)  Restart your computer, and don't open anything aside from Origin.  Set Origin to offline mode, then take your computer completely offline, as in, disable wifi and/or unplug the ethernet cable.  Launch the game, and set the in-game resolution to 1280x720; stay on fullscreen; don't change any other settings yet.  Start a new save and play for an hour or so.  Let me know how it runs initially and whether the lag appears or gets significantly worse as time goes on.

    • paolaelectra's avatar
      paolaelectra
      New Veteran
      5 years ago

      Hello again @puzzlezaddict!

      Well, I did and guess what?

      May 24, 2020 14:54 my time.

      Start the game (I've already created a Sim and placed her in the world)

      Placed the "Restaurant" that comes with some expansion, takes 5 mins aprox.

      After that, I start my game like you said, brand new, no Origin connection, no internet connection and no other program running (I disabled everything disableable)

      It took 10 secs for me to hear the "starting music" (you know which one, right?) so yay!

      But uh oh... game really started 1:50 mins after the sweet sound of starting music.

      Household: 1 Sim. World: San Myshuno. There are 3 Sims outside my apartment. With a fruitcake.

      After around a minute into the game:

      I have to pause/unpause my Sim to perform given action.

      I have to cancel bathing since Sim's hygiene bar is full and she's still playing in the bathtub. I open the calendar so canceling works, otherwise Sim would keep on bathing.

      Annoying sound and repetition of Sims' voices.

      Flickering screen.

      Sim time: 20:28 Real time 15:11

      Sim starts reading a book, progress bar stops so I pause/unpause. Ventilator sound.

      Needs bar low as to be in red remains green.

      I unzoom cam, action bar progresses.

      Sim time: 22:39 Real time: 15:15

      Needs bar finally had turned yellow (Hunger)

      Ventilator noise: progress and needs bars are neither dropping nor filling. Sound stops, bars move.

      Sim time: 00:39 Real time: 15:18

      Pause/unpause: both bars progress (remember Sim is reading)

      Sim time: 01:05 Real time: 15:20

      Sim finishes reading.

      Sims outside are still outside chatting, eating. Their voices are the ones that get doubled.

      Sim time: 03:23 Real time: 15:24

      Sim starts walking through walls and objects.

      Actions take a few seconds to appear into the action section.

      Sim time: 03:44 Sim goes to sleep.

      Sim time: 04:46 Sims outside, still outside

      Sim time: 06:21 One of them has peed.

      Ventilator sound hasn't stopped for a while.

      Sim time: 12:34 Real time: 15:37

      I zoom in: ventilator sound stops then starts again.

      Sim time: 13:18 Real time: 15:38

      While sleeping, I told my Sim to go to the bathroom and prepare some food.

      Energy bar full, Sim still asleep, after pause, she wakes up.

      DURING PAUSE: Bladder bar fills up, 4 simoleons get deducted from my account for the salad she has not even prepared yet. "Physically" my Sim is on her way to the bathroom.

      Sim time: 13:48 Real time: 15:40

      Audio doubles, image flickers

      Sims outside, still outside.

      Sim time: 14:36 Real time: 15:43

      Sim has gone to the bathroom, washed her hands, prepared a salad, she sits at the table... and she won't eat. Pause/unpause for it to happen.

      Sim time: 15:34

      She's done eating, though progress bar isn't completed. Pausing fixes this.

      Sim time: 15:58 Real time: 15:47

      As a favor to outside Sims, I'll take my Sim to the library. Press telephone icon,  click travel option...

      Sim time: 16:22 Real time: 15:49

      Traveling to Willow Creek Archive

      Real time: 15:50: Loading screen...

      Decent audio

      Ventilator sound goes off.

      Real time: 15:53 "Starting music" sound

      Plumbob stops

      Ventilator sound starts

      Sim time: 16:06 Real time: 15:54

      Sim at the library.

      I save and exit.

      Sorry for the long post, for short, I experienced a significant decrease in loading screens time, all the rest, still happens at my normal game.

      Thank you if you read all that, if not, thank you anyway.

      • puzzlezaddict's avatar
        puzzlezaddict
        Hero+
        5 years ago

        @paolaelectra  I did read it, or most of it—I might have started skimming and looking at the listed times to see how things were going.  Please check your in-game framerates at the 1280x720 resolution, and also at 1920x1080.  You don't need an exact average, I just want to know where the number settles when you're not moving the camera or anything.  You can enable the fps counter in Origin: hover over your username, select Application Settings, then the Origin in-game header, and choose a corner of your screen where you want the fps counter displayed.

        Please also run hwinfo and generate a log file, so I can see how your hardware performs.  You can download it for free here:

        https://www.hwinfo.com/download/

        You can choose to install the full version (under Installer) if you want, and be sure to click the green button, not the orange one.  Or, if you'd prefer not to install anything, download the portable version instead.  You can unzip it and launch it from Downloads or wherever you want to keep it.

        Restart your computer, open hwinfo, choose "sensors only," and click the icon that's a sheet of paper with a + sign to start logging.  When you're asked where to save the log, choose your desktop, so it's easy to find later.  Wait five minutes, then open Origin and Sims 4, but don't run anything else at all on your computer.  Play for at least 20 minutes, quit, and stop the logging by clicking the same icon.

        Upload the hwinfo log to a third-party filehosting site, and link it here.  Please leave it in .csv format, otherwise my log reader may not be able to open it.

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